


change the fate's design

by julzy_poolzy



Category: The Penumbra Podcast
Genre: Ben is alive, Canonical Child Abuse, F/F, F/M, Inspired by Tangled (2010), M/M, Multi, Other, Past Child Abuse, buddy and vespa are queens, juno is rapunzel, peter is flynn rider, sarah steel is a bad mom, the ruby seven is a horse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:01:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24222472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/julzy_poolzy/pseuds/julzy_poolzy
Summary: This is the story of how I died.Don’t worry, this is actually a very fun story. And the truth is, it isn’t even mine. This is the story of a lady named Juno.(Beware of the tags! This is definitely Darker than Tangled [but also 100x gayer so])
Relationships: Benzaiten Steel & Juno Steel, Buddy Aurinko/Vespa, Mick Mercury/Benzaiten Steel, Peter Nureyev/Juno Steel
Comments: 20
Kudos: 41





	1. Opening Monologue

This is the story of how I died.

Don’t worry, this is actually a very fun story. And the truth is, it isn’t even mine. This is the story of a lady named Juno.

And it starts with the sun. Now, once upon a time, a single drop of sunlight fell from the heavens. And from this small drop of sun grew a magic, golden, flower. It had the ability to heal the sick and injured.

Well. Centuries pass and a hop skip and a bump away there grew a kingdom. The kingdom was ruled by two beloved Queens. And Queen Buddy, well, she was about to have a baby. But she got sick. Really, really sick.

She was running out of time.

And that’s when people usually start to look for a miracle. Or, in this case, a magic golden flower.

One woman had already found the flower. You see, instead of sharing the sun’s gift, this woman, Mother Sarah, hoarded it’s healing power and used it to keep herself young for hundreds of years.

Palace guards found the golden flower, despite Sarah’s best efforts.

The magic of the golden flower healed Queen Buddy and two beautiful twin babies were born, the first of them with bright, golden hair.

I’ll give you a hint. That one’s Juno.

To celebrate their birth, the Queens launched two flying lanterns into the sky. For that one moment, everything was perfect.

And then that moment ended.

Mother Sarah broke into the castle, stole the child, and just like that… gone.

The kingdom searched and searched, but they could not find the princess.

But, deep within the forest, in a hidden tower, Sarah raised the child as her own.

The walls of the tower could not hide everything.

Each year on his birthday, Queen Vespa and Queen Buddy released thousands of lanterns into the sky. In hope that one day, their lost princess would return.


	2. the twins

Juno did his best to keep himself occupied while Mother wasn’t home. He attempted to brush out his hair, broke five brushes, and gave up. He reread two of his favorite books. He took another shot at making a quiche.

This started when he woke up at 7am.

It was 9:15 when he got bored.

His birthday was in two days, and Juno felt like that meant his time right now should be exciting. Like something should be happening right now.

Nothing was happening. Literally nothing interesting was happening ever.

Once he finished the quiche that he knew was Ma’s favorite, he went back over his notes and his plans for today.

Ma usually brought him books to take up his time, and she figured out at a very early age that Juno’s favorite books were the mysteries. He liked to challenge himself and figure out Who Done It before getting even a quarter of the way into the book. Juno started to take notes, just like the detectives in the stories, because that always helped them figure it out.

Juno kept extensive notes about everything, because what the hell else was there to do around here? Bake? Make candles? Sew a dress?

Sounds boring.

The notes Juno had were as follows: There are lights to the east, every year, on his birthday. December 24th. There’s something about these lights that draw him to them. Is it something to do with his hair? They both glow gold. Could be a connection.

And that was all he had on the magic lights that only appeared on his birthday. He charted the stars, painted them onto the ceiling, and these lights were a phenomenon. Stars had a pattern, sure, and the same stars usually showed up around the same time of year, but stars aren’t connected to a date. These lights were.

Juno just had a gut feeling that these lights were made for him. And, when a detective follows their gut, they’re usually right.

He went up to his room and put on the nice dress that Ma got him last year. Juno is well aware she got it because she felt bad for yelling at him, but it always made her feel better about herself when Juno used the gifts she gave him. Something about this shade of pink and purple being extremely rare, the bright colors of the dress accentuating the bright gold of his hair.

Whatever. He didn’t actually care about that. He just knew that she did.

Cleaning up the house, setting the quiche out to cool in the window so Ma would smell it on her way home and be in a good mood when she came in. He mopped, he dusted, he polished Ma’s favorite trinkets and made her bed, and did her laundry.

Really doing everything he possibly could to earn her favor. His 21st Birthday is in two days and he really wants to go see those damn lights.

**_~~~~~~~~~~_ **

Prince Benzaiten walked the palace halls with an ever-present emptiness by his side. He’s felt it for as long as he can remember, and he knows who that space used to belong to. His mothers tried to shelter him when he was younger, keeping him in sight, surrounded by guards in the palace, for fear of losing him too. But, he was turning 21 in two days. They couldn’t keep him locked up in the palace forever. In fact, they hadn’t really been keeping him there. He’s been sneaking out of the palace to hang out with children his age in Castle Town since he was 13.

“My Prince, Queen Buddy is requesting your presence in the Salon.”

Benten nods, a warm smile on his face. “Thank you, Captain. Where is my Other Mother?”

The Captain of the guard, Jet, smiles softly with amusement. “Queen Vespa is in her study, as per usual. Would you like me to call on her majesty?”

“No, that’s alright. Thank you.” Ben nods at the Captain with a smile that wins over even the most stubborn foreign diplomats and makes his way to the salon.

He knocks on the door as he enters, peering in to only see the red-haired queen looking over some papers. She looks up and smiles as she sees her son.

“Ah, Benny! You got here quickly. I’m glad.” She gets up and gives him a quick kiss on the cheek before ushering him over to the pile of papers. “Now, Darling, I’m aware that you don’t want anything big for your birthday-”

“-Mom-” he groans, immediately being cut off.

“But! 21 is a big year. We will, of course, be doing the lanterns for your brother-” There was always a sadness in her voice when Juno was mentioned. “-but we just wanted to know if there was… anything else you wanted for your birthday. And if you aren’t sure, Darling, that is alright. Your mother and I had some… ideas.” Buddy puts her hand over her son’s, meeting his eyes. “I am… aware that we may have been a bit overprotective of you, Darling, and actions born out of fear, while well-meaning, can also be… unfair.”

Benten smiles, aware of where this conversation is going. “...Mom, are you saying…?”

“If you would like, for your birthday, you may go around Castle Town. I just ask that you stay with the guards we assign to you, Benzaiten. Please.”

He pouts. “Guards, plural? Can I just have one really good one?” He sits up, a sudden idea hitting him. “Like Sasha! She’s a really good guard! Been training under the Captain her whole life! Please, mom? I just- I want to see what the people are  _ really  _ like, without any barrier between us! I don’t want them to be afraid to talk to me, you know?”

Buddy sighs, taking in the hope in her son’s eyes. Golden brown, lighter than her own. “Two guards. But they don’t have to be dressed as guards. It can be like… you have two undercover guards. Secret guards! Isn’t that fun, Benny?”

Ben pouts, a small huff of indignance leaving his lips. “May I at least pick the other guard, then?” A mischievous smile reaches the young prince’s features. “Does Ruby count as a guard, or…?”

Buddy lets out a laugh despite herself, smiling at her wonderful son. “Darling, I believe walking around with a horse may be worse than walking around with two people. And if you bring Ruby, Jet must also go with her, and I’m not sure Jet can be… incognito. He’s a very straightforward man, and also a giant. Would not be very good undercover.”

Benten laughs with his mom. “Alright, alright, your point is heard. I’ll… think about it.”

“Decide by tomorrow night, if you would. Captain Sikuliaq still needs to finalize the guard’s schedule for the day, and you know how that man hates surprises.”

“Almost as much as you do, Mom.”

“On the contrary, Darling, the best surprises are life-changing.” Buddy holds both of Benzaiten’s hands in hers. “You were a surprise, and an absolute blessing upon my and your Mother’s life.”

“I… was?”

Buddy nods, a nostalgic smile on her face. “I know we don’t talk about it often, or maybe we haven’t mentioned it at all, but when I was pregnant… it hadn’t even crossed our minds that we may have been having twins. Vespa may be a doctor, dear, but she’s never dealt with pregnancy before. We just thought I was going to have one Very Big Baby.”

Ben’s laugh startles him, a wistful smile on his face.

“Juno came out, a tiny, very grumpy little thing, with a full head of hair. And then, not five minutes later, there you were. Eyes wide open with a smile. Juno calmed down the moment we put you next to him, and, well… You both were so beautiful.”

They both smile sadly, still holding on to each other’s hands. “I know he’s out there, mom. I can feel it, from the bottom of my heart.” Buddy raises one hand to cup her son’s cheek, her smile was… hard to read.

“I believe you, Benzaiten. May we only hope that he comes back to us, someday.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> buddy is a good mom. sarah steel can get fuckd
> 
> Find me on tumblr [@julzypoolzy](https://julzypoolzy.tumblr.com/) and on Twitter [@julzy_poolzy](https://twitter.com/julzy_poolzy)


	3. the thief

“Oh, Juno! Let down your hair!”

He jumps up from his place on the sofa, where he was reading, and straightens out his dress. “Coming, Ma!”

Juno rushes over the window and throws his hair down, hooking it up to use as a pulley.

“Juno, my little monster, you work so hard! Doing this every day, it must be exhausting~” He holds his hand out to help her through the window, smiling shyly.

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

“Well, then I don’t see why it takes so long.” She playfully pokes his nose. “Oh, that was a joke, dear. Don’t take everything so seriously, you’ll get wrinkles.”

Juno puts on a fake grin and smiles at her. “Of course, Ma. I made a quiche, would you like some?”

Sarah looks him over, a suspicious smirk growing on her face as she takes him in. “Oh, my flower, you’re wearing the dress! So beautiful, dear. You should wear dresses more often.”

She called him “flower” instead of “little monster” that time. That’s a good sign.

Juno rambles as he goes over to cut the quiche. “Dresses are a lot more comfortable than pants, I’ll admit, I’m just worried about it getting caught on something while I’m doing chores. My hair gets caught on enough things, ya know?”

He brings Sarah a plate with a slice of quiche on it as she sits down in her chair.

“Oh, I completely understand, my flower.” She picks up her fork and takes a small bite, making a small “mm” sound in affirmation. “Oh, this is delicious! I love it when you bake for me, my flower. You’re very talented.”

A bit of pink taints his cheeks as he blushes at the praise, sitting down across from her. “Thanks, Ma. I’ve been trying to get better.”

“Yes, well, you’ve certainly improved since that time you almost burnt down the tower. Do you remember that, my little monster?” Juno can feel the phantom pain of that day but quickly whisks it away.

He nods solemnly and Sarah puts a finger under his chin, lifting his head to meet his eyes.

“We don’t have to worry about anything like that happening again, though, do we?” 

Juno shakes his head quickly. “No, of course not. I’ve grown a lot since then. And, speaking of growing, I actually had something I wanted to talk with you about-”

“Oh, I was expecting this. You’re so nice to me because you want something, of course!”

“No, Ma, it’s not like that. I just- you haven’t mentioned it yet, so I wasn’t sure if you forgot, but, uhm…” he cowers a little under her scrutinizing gaze, taking a second to regrow his confidence. “It’s my birthday, in two days, and I’m turning 21. I was just wondering if… If we could… go out, for a while. Maybe go see the… the floating lights.”

Sarah stares at him with a hard-set jaw and steady glare over his face. It’s quiet for a moment, and each second that passes allows despair to grow in Juno’s mind.

“You want to go outside, and leave the safety of this tower, to go see some  _ stars _ ?”

He starts to talk before he can stop himself. “They’re not stars, Ma. I’ve charted the stars. These are- they’re different. Every year on my birthday there’s lights floating up from the ground and into the sky, and- only on my birthday! For as long as I can remember! I just want to know what they are and see them up close, I don’t-”

“You want to leave?! When you know what they did to your brother out there, what they tried to do to you?! No, Juno, I can’t allow this.”

“I’ll- I’ll stay with you, the whole time, and it’ll be safe!”

“Juno, I said no!” She stands abruptly, “Or do I need to remind you that they killed your brother for this power before I could even name him! They would do worse to you if they found you!”

He completely shrinks in his seat, feeling like a kid again. “I’m… I’m sorry, Ma.”

Apologize before it gets real bad. That’s something he learned the hard way.

She softens, moving to gently cup Juno’s cheek as he flinches away, but she still does it.

“I’m sorry too, little monster. I just get so upset when I… am reminded of what they did to me.” Sarah slumps back down in her chair. “I must head out again soon. Think of a better birthday gift, dear, and I will get it for you.”

He nods, staying still as she gently runs a hand through his hair and kisses the top of his head. “Okay, yeah. I’ll think of something… realistic.”

“Good idea, my little monster. I’ll be back for dinner.”

Juno nods again, moving to lower her down from the tower. He waves as she walks away, and she blows him a kiss before leaving the hidden canyon where his tower is. The tower that he will be in… forever.

No. No, that wouldn’t do. He was going to get out of this tower, with or without his mother. It’s like a heist, from one of the mystery books he read. Only he’s not trying to steal precious jewels, Juno is just trying to… live.

**_~~~~~~~~~~_ **

“My Prince!” Benzaiten turned to the voice, a bit tired of people calling on him today. Only, he swept away any sign of agitation and put on his patented smile as an unfamiliar face walked briskly towards him.

“Good Afternoon,” he greeted the stranger, studying him. “My apologies, I don’t believe we’ve met before.” The man walking up to him was tall and thin, with extremely long legs. He had the clothes of a noble and rich black hair, with triangular-shaped glasses perched on the edge of his nose. Either due to the fact that he’s always looking down on people, regarding his height, or because it’s a fashion choice and he doesn’t actually need glasses.

The man flashed a charming, sharp-toothed grin at the prince, pausing a moment before speaking. “No, we have not met before. I am Duke Rose, your majesty. It’s a pleasure.”

The Duke bows slightly, holding out his hand. Benten tentatively places his hand in the Duke’s. “The pleasure is all mine, I’m sure.” When Rose lifts Ben’s hand to place a kiss on it, the Prince is well aware that this man is laying his charm on thick. He doesn’t know who he’s playing with. “What brings you to the castle, Duke Rose?”

Duke stands up straight again, slowly, teasingly letting go of Ben’s hand. Oh, he’s good.

“Ah, quite dull business, I’m afraid.” A smile with a twinge of sadness. “I came to wish your majesty a happy birthday. I hoped I would be able to stay long enough for the festivities, but, unfortunately, something has come up.”

Benzaiten feigns a pout. “Oh, dear. That is unfortunate. Have you ever attended the festival before?”

“When I was young, of course, but never a birthday quite so important as the 21st.”

The Prince smiles kindly, nodding along. “Yes, well, I’m not quite sure what will be happening this year, truthfully. My Mother has banned me from helping.” A casual shrug, a flutter of eyelashes. “Although, I am sure it will be fantastic. There is always next year, Duke Rose. Perhaps you will be able to make it then.”

“One can only hope, Prince Benzaiten.”

With another gentle kiss of his hand, Benten bids Duke Rose farewell and turns to walk away. He can feel the Duke’s eyes on him as he goes down the hallway until he finally turns a corner.

He almost walks straight into Captain Jet, who was coming around the corner.

“Prince Benzaiten, is everything alright?” Ben notes the other guards in this hall.

“Yes, of course, just in a hurry. Late for dance practice, is all.”

Jet peers around the corner and sees the Duke walking away. “Who was that? Should I take care of him?”

“No!” Ben says a little too loudly, drawing the attention of the other guards. “I mean, no. It’s alright. He’s a Duke, Captain, just stopped me for a friendly chat. My mothers are overprotective enough, Jet. You don’t have to be as well.” He says the last bit in a whisper, quiet enough that only he could hear.

“They pay me to be overprotective, Benten. That is my job.” He looks back at the prince, a softness in his eyes that he rarely ever shows. “If you insist, my Prince, then I trust your judgement. Have fun at Dance Practice.”

Ben smiles at him and then hurries down the hall to his dance studio.

**_~~~_ **

He’s only just gotten focused on his practice when someone interrupts.

“Your Majesty! I’ve been instructed to bring you up to your Mother’s study.”

Benten turns to look at the guard. “Sir Caroline. What has happened?”

“Someone has stolen your brother’s tiara. Captain Siquliak has requested I escort you to your Mother’s Study, for safety.”

Still in his dance clothes, Benzaiten starts down the hall, toward the room where they were keeping the tiara. “How? There are always at least five knights guarding the treasury. Is it the only thing that was stolen?”

“Yes, my prince, it was. I must insist that we get you to safety-”

“Were the knights knocked out? Rendered unconscious?”

“No, they were not.”

“Did any of them see the thief?”

Prince Benzaiten’s stubbornness far outweighed any rumor of it, thought Sir Caroline. “No one saw the thief. It seems they used the ventilation system to lower themselves down into the room, behind the guards, and take the crown without alarm.”

He stopped and turned to look at her. “They… hm.” The vents were usually how Benten snuck out of the castle to meet with his friends in town. “How long ago was this?”

“Anytime from five to fifteen minutes ago, sire.”

“Send guards to where the vents let out, just below the palace, into an alley by Old Town. There’s another exit into the hills above the palace, but that one is much harder to get to.”

“My Prince, how do you-”

“A secret is a secret.” He grins at her. “Go, now. I know the way to my mother’s study. That passage takes about twenty minutes to get to, so we don’t have much time.”

Sir Caroline gets over her shock quickly, nodding at him and rushing back toward the treasury. Benzaiten, a Prince of his word, starts toward his Mother’s Study.

“Benny, oh, thank goodness.” The moment he walks through the door his mother wraps her arms around him. He chuckles softly.

“I’m okay, Mom. The treasury is on the other side of the castle from my dance studio, anyway.”

“Logic doesn’t stop a mother from worrying, dear.”

The Prince looks over to his other mother, looking up at them over her desk with a small, fond smile.

“What’s the plan, Ma?”

Queen Vespa shakes the smile off her face and looks back down over her maps. A floorplan of the castle, and a map of the entire area, including the forest. “Well. Jet is leading the search. We’ve upped guards at every entrance into the castle, as well as on the bridge into the forest and at the docks. Those are really the only ways out of town.”

“Unless the thief goes through this way and climbs over the hills into the forest.” He walks over to her, looking at the maps as well. “Sir Caroline told me that the thief used the ventilation system to sneak past the guards. One of the vents goes to the hills. It’s hard to climb but, well, if you’re robbing a royal family it’s probably the easiest way to go.” He glances over at her. “Why does the treasury need ventilation, anyway?”

The Queen shrugs. “We didn’t build this castle. Ask your grandparents.”

Queen Buddy sighs and walks over to her wife and son. “My parents did not make the best design choices, obviously.”

“So, what are you suggesting, Ben?”

“I already told Sir Caroline about the exit. There should be guards on the way there now.”

There’s a knock on the door.

“Come in!” Queen Buddy calls. The doors open as Duke Rose strides in.

“Your Highnesses.” He bows shallowly, always keeping his eyes on them above his glasses. How did they not fall off when he bows?

“Duke Rose,” Prince Benzaiten replies. “To what do we owe this pleasure?”

“I was just on my way out when I heard some rumblings of a robbery. I came to offer my help, should you need it.”

“I thought you had urgent business to attend, Duke.”

“He’ll understand.” Ben raises an eyebrow as the Duke smiles. “My darling wife, yes.”

Ben nods, sharing a glance with his mothers. “Duchess Rose, of course. Thank you for the offer, Duke, but we have the situation handled.” He smiles his charming princely smile and the Duke grins back at him.

“Of course, my prince. I shall be on my way then.” He bows to each of the Queens and they both give him a nod, smiling politely as he leaves.

Once the door is closed, Ben looks at his mothers. They’re both staring at him.

“You know him?” Queen Vespa asks.

“Yes, mom, he’s a Duke.”

Buddy nods, looking over to the now-closed door. “Don’t believe I recognize him. Handsome. Shame he’s already married.”

“ _ Mama _ .” Buddy laughs softly and puts a hand on her son’s shoulder.

“Just trying to lighten the mood, Darling. Now, let’s catch this thief, hm?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this took a bit to update, I hit a ~depressive episode~ with everything going on in the world right now. Regardless of that, I hope this brings you some joy! The good part is coming up soon, I promise.  
> Thank you for all the kind comments and kudos! It really brightens my day when I see people are enjoying this thing I made.
> 
> Find me on tumblr [@julzypoolzy](https://julzypoolzy.tumblr.com/) and on Twitter [@julzy_poolzy](https://twitter.com/julzy_poolzy)


	4. the tiara

Juno looks in the mirror, practicing what he’s going to say.

“Welcome home, Ma!” He groans. “No. Nope. Welcome home, Ma. I’ve realized my request before was immature.” He clenches his teeth. “And I wanted to… Nope. No. No no nope. Okay. Alright.” He poses differently, one hand on his hip and a smile wide on his face. “Hey, Ma! I realize that before I was being childish. Please get me the paints that take five days to get. No reason.” 

He sighs, falling back on the couch dramatically. 

“She’s never going to fall for that. This is stupid. My ticket out of here is never coming. I’m just gonna stay in this tower forever, I guess.” He almost cries as soon as he says that, the dread of never seeing anything other than the rooms of this tower fills him so quickly it overwhelms him to the point that he can’t even feel it. “I’m doomed.”

There’s something outside his window, he realizes. The sound of… panting?

Juno grabs the closest thing to him and hides by the next to the window, ready to whack whatever it is with his… frying pan.

The figure climbs through the window, laughing with relief as their feet hit the ground. They take off their satchel and open it, smiling as they look inside.

“Ah, alone at last~” Juno hits them with the frying pan and they collapse to the ground quickly. He steps away from the now-unconscious being on his floor.

Juno has, obviously, not seen a wide variety of people in his lifetime. But this person was… pretty, he guessed? In some of the books he reads the cover will have a character there, and this person looked like a character in a book. He poked at them, making sure they wouldn’t wake up, and inspected them. Their mouth was hanging a little open and he could see some sharp canine teeth in there. Sharper than his or Ma’s, at the very least. They also wore glasses, which thankfully weren’t broken by the fall. Their hair swooped over their face like it was still meant to be there and Juno’s breath just… caught in his throat for a moment.

Then the sun shined through the window and a beam of light caught something from inside this person’s satchel, drawing Juno’s attention to it. He carefully picks up the bag and looks inside. There’s not many things in there. A knife and some other small tools that Juno doesn’t know the use of. A small booklet as well, with scribbles and doodles in it. And then, of course, the thing that caught Juno’s eye.

He takes it out, putting the bag down. It was… gold. Solid. With gems inlaid at the front, making the picture of the sun in red rubies, with small green emeralds in the shape of tears getting smaller as it goes around the band.

It was a tiara. He read many books about princesses when he was younger, he knew what a tiara should look like. And something about it just… took his breath away. Walking over to the mirror, Juno carefully placed the tiara atop his head and everything just paused for a moment. It was… beautiful. He looked beautiful and maybe even elegant while wearing this thing.

The person behind him let out a small groan and Juno quickly moved, one sharp strike to the head with his fist and they stayed down.

To his surprise, the tiara didn’t fly off his head as he ran.

Taking the tiara off carefully, Juno placed it back in the bag.

Then, he looks back to the unconscious being on his floor.

Oh, what has he just gotten himself into?

**_~~~_ **

Juno hid the satchel under one of the steps that lead up to his room.

As he’s pacing, trying to think of what to do with the person he now has tied to a chair in his bedroom.

There’s no evidence to suggest that they came here for Juno. Though, why anyone would just climb a random tower they found in the middle of the forest is beyond Juno’s comprehension. They seemed to just be hiding from something, probably because they stole that tiara.

If Juno uses this leverage, then he can talk this thief into leading him out of the forest. And, well, if he gets caught once they reach more populated territory, then Juno will know his way back.

Should Juno bring the tiara with him and try to return it to whoever this thief stole it from?

No, no, if he found it then that would be bad for Juno. The tiara will be a problem for future Juno. But he would return it to it’s rightful owner, he swore to himself. It was just the right thing to do.

“Oh, Juno! Let down your hair!” He rushed over at his mother’s call, glancing nervously up to his room as he throws the end of his hair out the window, hooking it like he’s done a thousand times before.

He smiles at his mother as she climbs in through the windowsill.

“Ah, hello my little monster.”

“Hey, Ma, I’ve been thinking since you left-”

“Oh, no.”

He pauses at her tone, looking at her, trying to decipher the look on her face. “I realize that… asking to just go see some stars and put us in danger was… a dumb idea. I was being childish.” He lays it on thick, placing all blame on himself to make her feel better. The small smile growing on her face shows that it’s working. “I thought of a much better gift, if it’s okay with you.”

“Anything for my flower.” She pats his head softly, running her fingers slowly through his hair.

“Do you remember those… seashell paints you got me? For my eighteenth birthday? If it’s not too much trouble I’d… I’d like those, please.”

“Little monster-” he winces slightly at that nickname “- the travel for those paints will take five days.”

“I know, Ma, I just thought it was a better gift than the… than the stars.” She lays a soft kiss to his hairline and looks him in the eyes.

“Yes, alright, my flower. I’ll leave immediately, and we’ll celebrate when I get home, hm?”

“Thank you, Ma.”

Smiling as he packs up a basket of food for her, he glances again back up at his room, where the thief must still be tied up. And also gagged. And surrounded by pillows so if he moves around, he doesn’t make any noise.

Juno really tried to think this one through.

He hands Ma the basket, and she gives him one last hug before he gets ready to lower her down.

“I love you, my flower!”

“I love you more!” he teases, knowing how this goes.

“I love you most.” She calls, voice soft as Juno lowers her down carefully. Once on the ground, he leans out the window and waves as she exits through the small cave leading out of the little dip in the mountains that makes their home.

Once out of sight, Juno starts heading up toward his room. 

**_~~~~~~~~~~_ **

Prince Benzaiten was on the border of anxious and peaceful. Meaning, he was almost so anxious he was numb.

He had a guard escorting him everywhere he went. Thankfully, he got to choose the guard, and he picked Sasha.

He didn’t feel like going back to dance practice. Once he changed back into his princely attire, he went and stood out on the balcony, basking in the mid-afternoon sun as he looked out over the sea.

“Sasha?”

“Yes, your majesty?” He glared at her momentarily before she glanced around and sighed. “Yes, Ben?” He smiles at her, gesturing for her to come join him at the railing. She does.

“What do you think he’s like, now?”

“Your brother?” Ben hums softly in confirmation. “Hm. Well, all we can hope is that he’s safe somewhere, just waiting for us to find him, I suppose. If the stories you told from when you were toddlers are correct, then I imagine you two are very similar. What do you… What do you want him to be like, Ben?”

“I don’t know. Mom says he was whinier than I was, especially when we weren’t together.” His voice is soft. “He was gone before our first birthday, but I swear I can… remember him, I guess? There’s just a feeling like I’m missing something, but I can remember what it was like when he was next to me. Which is dumb, I know, but there’s this tug in my heart that tells me he’s still out there. He… He just started walking, before he was taken. Mom said she picked me up to give me a bath or something and he just wouldn’t have it. He got up and ran.” Ben chuckles, looking over at the softly concerned look on Sasha’s face. “I think he’ll find me. He’ll come home, I know it. I just hope it’s soon.”

There’s a moment of silence as Sasha observes her friend, the prince, who she’s known for as long as she can remember. “Ben, may I… ask you something?”

“Of course.”

“Why is it that… you never say his name? Since he was taken, I’ve never heard anyone refer to him by name, even those who have been in the palace since you were born.”

“Well, we don’t know if that’s still his name. And it makes my mothers sad to think about that, so he’s just… only referred to as my twin, or my brother, or the princess.” Ben glances to his friend. “He was taken when we were so young. We don’t know if whoever took him kept the name my mother gave him, or if they changed it.”

“So you don’t want to get used to a name, if when he comes back it’s different.” Ben nods.

“Of course, when someone changes their name anyway it’s never an issue.” He smiles at Sasha, remembering when they used to call her something else. But that was a very, very long time ago. “I also think that my mothers didn’t want anyone coming to the palace, pretending to be him. It would be easier to do that if they knew his name.”

Sasha nods, looking back over the sea. “That makes sense.” She sighs, watching the sun lower in the sky. “Well, My Prince-” she does an over-dramatic bow, making Ben laugh “-it is about time for your Royal Meal.”

“Thank you, Sir Sasha. Will you please Escort My Highness to Dinner, Please.” 

“Of Course, your Royal Majesty-Highness.” She raises her head and stiffly offers Ben her arm, which he takes, and he laughs as they leave the balcony, causing her to also burst into a soft fit of giggles.

“Thank you, Sash.”

“Anytime, Ben.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who's getting their first real interaction next chapter~ Juno and ???????????
> 
> I probably won't be keeping the Juno Focus ~ Ben Focus thing up for every chapter because Ben.... is just kinda in the castle. Maybe other people will get a little ~Focus~ instead but this story IS about Juno so it's just sorta.... Yeah. A lot more people will be showing up in the next few chapters! I've been dropping a few Second Citadel characters in here and there, one of them may be a little important, I'm not entirely sure yet.
> 
> Find me on tumblr [@julzypoolzy](https://julzypoolzy.tumblr.com/) and on Twitter [@julzy_poolzy](https://twitter.com/julzy_poolzy)


	5. first meeting

Juno hides in the shadows, leaving the curtains of his room mostly closed as he waits for his prisoner to wake up.

Well, maybe prisoner is a bit… much. His would-be home intruder, perhaps?

He mulls over the semantics of this situation in his head until the thief starts to stir in his chair, letting out a small groan as he lifts his head, craning his neck a bit to look around after trying to tug at his hands, only to find them bound with rope behind his back.

The thief lets out a chuckle. Low and amused, obviously surprised. “Well… This usually doesn’t happen until at least the third date, but I suppose my natural charm can’t be helped.”

“Why are you here?” Juno asks from behind the thief. His head turns in an attempt to look at the lady, but he just barely can see him in his periphery. Also, Juno took his glasses.

“It’s rather rude to take a man’s means of sight away from him, you know.” The thief turns his head forward, squinting to try and observe the room.

“What do you want?” Juno does his best to sound intimidating, he really does, but he can’t help the little crack in his voice as he speaks.

“I’ve always been told to prioritize wants and needs by the current situation. Right now, I would very much like to be untied and have my glasses back. After which I would leave.” Juno starts to circle around him, his glasses in hand as he makes his way to stand in front of the thief. “Oh, dear! There you are. Well. It is good to say this to your face, hm? I apologize for my intrusion. I was simply searching for a place to hide for a bit when I stumbled across this cleverly hidden passage in the mountside, leading me… here. I’ve always been curious by nature and, well, when a man sees a mysterious tower hidden in a forest, he just must climb it.”

Juno had suspected as much. If someone were to come and attempt to take him away, they probably wouldn’t just climb through the window with reckless abandon.

Here he had an opportunity.

“And where did you get that tiara in your satchel, hm?” Juno smirks a bit as the thief sits up straight in sudden panic. “Oh, you won’t find it in here. Or, well, you won’t find it anywhere in this tower without my help.”

He sighs in defeat, looking up at Juno with squinted eyes. “May I at least be allowed to properly see my captor?”

“I’m not sure captor is really the right word for this situation. You  _ did  _ break into my home, but… hm.... I did tie you to a chair. Maybe captor is the right word?” Juno gets lost in this train of thought again as he places the glasses on the thief’s face, stepping back with a small smile and his hands on his hips.

He blinks a few times as he looks up at Juno, mouth hanging open slightly as his eyes adjust. “Oh…. wow.” He looks Juno up and down, making him feel a bit self-conscious even though he’s not the one tied to a chair. “You are… magnificent.”

Juno crosses his arms, frowning at him with his resting grumpy face. “Flattery won’t get you out of this, alright?”

“No, no, of course not, I was just a bit… taken aback, is all.” He clears his throat. “My apologies. The name is… Glass. Rex Glass. It is an honor to make your acquaintance.”

“Juno,” he replies before turning around to pick up his sketchbook. “Do you recognize this?” He holds up the painting he did of the floating lights in the sky.

Rex seems to take a moment to absorb the situation but recovers quickly. “Ah. You must mean the lanterns they do for the Prince’s Birthday.”

“Lanterns… I knew it wasn’t just stars,” Juno mumbles to himself, a satisfied smile on his face as he looks down at the painting. “Yes! Well. In two days, these lanterns will fill the night sky. You are taking me to see them.”

“Ah, well, I would love to but I’m really quite busy-”

“With selling your stolen tiara?” Juno asks, completely unimpressed. “You will never find it without my help. Once we have returned, then, and only then, will you get the tiara back.”

Rex stares at Juno, seemingly running all the calculations in his head. “I… hm. Well, you’ve put me in quite a tough spot, truly.” He observes Juno again, then realizes for the first time that he can’t see the end of the lady’s hair. “May I ask what you use to keep your hair so healthy as such length? It’s truly remarkable.” He keeps turning to try and follow where the hair goes, but it just… keeps going.

“Magic,” Juno answers, deadpan. “So do you agree or am I tossing you out the window, tiara-less?”

“No, that won’t be necessary.” Rex smiles, which looks innocent until you notice the fox’s teeth poking out slightly. Juno could get lost in that smile… but he can’t.  _ Don’t fall for the first pretty face you see _ , he tells himself. “I’ll take you to see the lanterns and bring you home, safe and sound.”

He tries to suppress a joyful smile and barely manages it. “Good… Good.”

To be completely honest, Juno did not think he would get this far.

Not realizing that a few moments have passed, Juno is brought back to reality by the thief. “Ahem. If we are going to do this, then you should untie me.”

“Oh! Yeah, I was getting there.” Glass chuckles as Juno stumbles to untie the ropes still binding him. He undoes his hands first, then leans down in front of the thief to untie his ankles from the legs of the chair.

Rex flexes his wrists to revive the circulation before looking down at Juno. The lady notices the blush rising on Glass' face and raises an eyebrow.

"... Are you okay? You look flushed." His eyes widen. "Did I hit you too hard? I read it's not good to get hit in the head but I wasn't really thinking when I hit you I was just startled and I-"

"No!" Rex interrupts. "I mean, no, it's… it's fine. I'm fine. A bit of a headache, but I'll be alright."

Juno lets out a small sigh of relief as he stands. "Well, then. I suppose we should get going."

Glass stands up, and Juno realizes just how tall the man is, needing to look up quite a bit just to see his face.

The thief smiles. "Yes. Let's."

**_~~~~~~~~~~_ **

Prince Benzaiten is many things. Easy on the eyes. Quick on his feet. Graceful. Elegant.

He is not, however, subtle.

"So… Mick. You, uh, come here often?"

The man gives him a weird, quirky smile. "Yes, Ben, I work here. You know that." He laughs and Benten feels his heart flutter.

"Oh! Uh, yep. You're right. Wow, Mick, you're so smart!" 

What is the point of going to a tavern when you don't even like drinking, you ask? Well, the point is to flirt with the bartender because he's cute.

Mick snorts but smiles brightly as he hands Ben his drink. Beer that will not be consumed at all, and they both know that but neither of them says a thing as Ben tosses Mick some coin.

"Ben, this is way too much-"

"It's a tip." He smiles his deal-making grin.

"Whatever you say, Benny."

Another customer comes up and Mick serves them, but once he's done he immediately goes back to Ben.

"Say, Mick, what are you doing for the festival?"

"Oh! Uh, well, I don't have to work so. I'm not sure. I'll probably just… walk around with Sasha. Do… festival things. Drink too much. Dance. Play some games." He shrugs.

"Okay! Cool."

He raises an eyebrow. "What… are you doing for the festival, Ben?"

"Just, ya know, probably the same. Dancing. Playing some games."

"Do you wanna… do them…. together?"

His eyes light up, the conversation going exactly where he wanted it to. "Yes! That sounds amazing!"

Mick grins. "We can, uh, meet here? Around noon?"

"Perfect!"

Benzaiten's got a date. Now he just has to figure out how he's gonna lose Sasha in the crowd.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahahah....... whoops.
> 
> I was so unmotivated and I,, forgot to update. This chapter has been ready for a month, maybe? anyways,, I'll do better! and not leave y'all hanging for a few months next time. I've already written the parts I'm excited about!! Simply filling in the in-between is all I gotta do now!
> 
> also benmick rights
> 
> Find me on tumblr [@julzypoolzy](https://julzypoolzy.tumblr.com/) and on Twitter [@julzy_poolzy](https://twitter.com/julzy_poolzy)


	6. engagement

Juno stood near the window he has helped his mother exit thousands of times. He thought about how he would leave, more times than he could count. His hair was already hooked and the thief, "Rex Glass", was already lowering himself down from the window, knives dug into the side of the tower.

"Are you coming?" he was asked, and of course the answer was yes, but as Juno stood out on the windowsill, ready to use his hair as a rope down, he felt like he was going to throw up. The thief looked up at him with a furrowed brow, face otherwise unreadable before he chuckled softly. "Oh, dear. You're afraid of heights, aren't you? You delicate little thing…"

"I-I'm not…" his breath caught as he looked down again. He's well aware Ma instilled this fear in him from a very young age specifically to deter him from ever leaving. He tried, once.

He hadn't noticed Glass climbing back up until his hand touched his shoulder. "Would you like my help?"

Juno glanced down again, then back up at Glass with a wince. "What is your suggestion?"

"Well, I would hold onto you, and your…. hair and we would use it as a rope together. You wouldn't have to look down, but it would require me to have my arms around you. Is that alright?"

Juno blinked, a blush rising on his face as he looks up at Glass, who is not currently touching him or his hair, and nods slowly.

"Wonderful, detective. Would you prefer a countdown, or would you like to just go?" Juno secured his arms around Glass' neck as he wrapped an arm around his waist, pulling the lady close to him.

"Just go. And I'm not a Detective-" the final word was cut off by a scream as Glass stepped out of the window. Juno clutched onto him tighter, screwing his eyes closed. He heard Glass let out a laugh as they descended and before Juno even realized, they had… stopped.

"My, that was exhilarating!" Glass said once the wind stopped rushing in Juno's ears. His feet still weren't touching the ground as he had apparently held on so tightly to the thief that his arms were so securely wrapped around his shoulders, he's raised himself with their height difference, Glass' arm still an anchor around his waist.

They stared at each other for a moment, suddenly eye-to-eye, until Juno looked away. "You can, uh, put me down. Now." He said after loosening his grip on Glass, realizing it was the arm around his waist keeping him there.

"Ah. Yes, of course." He was lowered to the ground softly, gasping when his feet touched the ground. He let go of Glass immediately, turning around and walking in the grass, the sensation tickling his feet and delightful in a way he never even considered it might be. A gust of wind blew through his hair and he laughed quietly, starting to walk towards the exit of this dip in the mountains.

Juno couldn't help but start running, laughing as he went, doing a cartwheel in the grass near the exit then sitting down on the ground, brushing his fingers through the grass just to remember what it feels like.

Glass followed behind him, chuckling, catching up to him with a smile. "You've really never left that tower."

It was a statement, not a question, but Juno let out a noise of confirmation as he laid back in this bed of grass, memorizing how it feels. "I never thought grass would feel this nice. It's so…. soft."

"Give it a minute, detective. It will start to get annoying."

Juno glared at him, but he was right. After a minute it did start to feel weird, the way it tickled his back. He sighed, getting up, brushing off his skirts.

"We should get going," he said, looking back at the exit. Glass offered Juno his arm, but he just huffed and started walking. He heard the thief laugh again as they started to walk out and into the forest proper.

**_~~~~~~~~~~_ **

"My prince?"

Benzaiten snapped out of his thoughts and looked up at the guard. He smiled at the knight.

"Apologies, Sir Damien, I was… Lost in thought." Of Mick, and his date with Mick, and how he would get away from Sasha so he could be alone with Mick, and and and….

"Understandable, your majesty. It is easy to get lost in one's thoughts on a normal day, nevermind one such as this. Though it seems by the look on your face your mind is not on the theft."

Sir Damien, the most lovesick knight to ever exist. Benten really should've been paying attention when he walked in. He, of anyone, would be able to recognize the look on the prince's face.

"Ah, uhm, yes." Sir Damien chuckled.

"I will not ask, your highness, unless you wish to speak." Ben smiled at him again. "However, I was asked to give you an update on the investigation. Sir Caroline has found evidence that the exit through the tunnels was used in the escape and as well as the heist itself. It seems the thief used the exit into the mountains, as there are punctures into the side, suggesting they used knives to scale the vent."

"Oh, dear." Ben sighed, looking up from his notes. "If they hadn't stolen something so important, I'd say they earned it." He shook his head, tapping his pen on his desk. "Anything else, Damien?"

"Unfortunately not. Sir Caroline is trying to get up to the top of the vents with the help of Sir Angelo to see if they can trace the thief's tracks. Captain Siquliak is still combing the forest with the help of his elite guard. No word from them yet."

Sighing again, Ben rested his head upon his hand and looked down at his notes. "Thank you very much, Sir Damien."

"Of course, sire."

Ben looked up at him, blinking. "Have you used every honorific you can think of during this conversation, Sir Damien? I don't believe you said the same one twice." He laughed at the blush that rose on the Knight's face as he pointed it out. "It's not a criticism, Sir Damien, I simply noticed and, well… considering your way with words, I'm not sure why I was surprised."

"Ah, uhm, thank you…. Prince Benzaiten." He let out a loud laugh at that, Sir Damien joining him.

"Do you… have a minute to speak, Sir Damien?" The knight nods. "You are engaged, correct?"

Ben didn't need to ask for confirmation. No one needs to ask whether or not Sir Damien is engaged. His bride-to-be is the Palace physician, Amaryllis. They are not... subtle. Benzaiten vaguely remembers the first day the pair met, as he's the one who brought Damien to the infirmary (and the one who injured him during training).

"I am, Prince Benzaiten! And my thanks to you, as we met the day you stabbed me!"

"... Ah, yes. Well… you're welcome?" Damien laughed, finally sitting down across from the Prince at his desk. "I just have to ask… How did you, ahem, break the ice, so to speak?"

"Are you asking how I started courting her?" Ben nodded, and Damien's smile lit up his face. "My prince! I was not mistaken when I arrived, it seems. You are thinking of someone."

"... Perhaps…" Ben wasn't great at lying once he stopped putting on the 'Princely' act.

"I won't pry on details about this person, your majesty, but… you would like to know how I started courting my Rilla?" Ben nodded again. "Well, you bringing me into the infirmary with a slight stab wound did 'break the ice' rather thoroughly. She, well, she made me speechless. The whole time she was patching me up, I was silent, completely enraptured by her beauty. She told me off for staring." Damien laughed fondly, obviously enjoying recounting the memory. "Sharp-tongued as always, my Rilla. She told me that if I was going to stare, I should at least earn it by buying her dinner. So, I asked her when she was free."

"My, that's… lovely, Sir Damien. And what did you do on your first date?" Ben flipped the page in his notebook back to where he was jotting down ideas for his date with Mick.

"Oh, your majesty-"

"Just Ben is fine, Damien."

"..... Prince Ben-" he laughed "-our first date was horrendous. I… well, we went to the outdoor restaurant by the docks, which would have been wonderful had it not started to rain. Then, well, one of the townspeople recognized me as a knight, and asked for my help finding their cat, and finding the owner of the cat that looked exactly like there's but had snuck into their apartment and was not their cat, and I… fell into the harbor, at one point."

"Oh, dear. Well, did you find the cats?"

"Yes, Rilla… checks on them. They're both still happy with their correct owners." 

"How did you recover?"

"Well, I brought flowers to her office the next day and apologized, telling her I understood if she never wanted to see me again, and she started to laugh at me… saying she found it fun, and asked when we could go on another date." Damien laughed, shaking his head slightly before looking back to the Prince. "I suppose, your majesty, if you are asking for advice… Make a plan for the date, and do not be surprised when they don't go quite the way you imagined. Sometimes, it is better that way, and if this person has gained your affection then… well, I'm sure they'll stick around for someone as wonderful as yourself, regardless of how perfectly or absolutely horrendously the first date goes."

Benzaiten nods, tapping his pen on his desk again. "Thank you, Damien. That was… incredibly helpful." 

"Of course… Ben." He beams, smiling as he gets up to leave. The prince flashes his award-winning smile. The knight closes the door gently behind him, and Benzaiten returns to his work, switching between planning his date and trying to connect the dots behind this theft.

He’s not alone for an hour when there’s another knock on his door.

“Come in!” He calls, hiding his date planning notes under a pile of other papers.

“Hey, Princey!” the palace librarian, Rita, walks in, her face completely covered by the stack of books she’s carrying. Ben immediately stands to help her place them on the coffee table of the small seating area in the corner of his study.

“What’s this, Rita?”

"Well, see, I saw that dopey lil happy look on your face when you came back int'a the palace, so I figure ya finally got a date with that fella you're always tellin me about, so I brought some books!"

Having Rita as a confidant wasn't really a choice Benzaiten made, per se, but it definitely wasn't something he regretted. Made him question his decisions sometimes, perhaps, especially as he looked down at this pile of romance novels Rita brought in, but he would never regret it.

"These are just some'ah my favorites, and I even put lil pieces 'ah paper in there to tell ya where the best parts are! Well, not the  _ best  _ parts, if ya know what I mean, but just the sweet parts! to give ya ideas for your date! Though, I did just see Sir Damien leavin', so I'm betting you asked him for advice, huh? Well, it always pays to do more research, as they say-"

Rita keeps going on tangents about the best parts in every book she brought in, and Ben can't help but smile and wonder if this is what having a sibling around would feel like. Speaking freely and the comfort of their company. He wonders if his brother would go on tangents like Rita, speaking about everything at once but also nothing at all, or if he would've been more reserved.

Named after ancient goddesses, as their mothers would tell him, thanking whatever may be that they were blessed with their little miracles. Benzaiten and Hera Aurinko, heirs to the crown, separated at far too young an age to really remember each other, leaving Ben praying their luck didn't run out the day they were born.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lotta ben!!! i adore him and i LOVE damien! let him talk abt rilla <3 he deserves to <3
> 
> Find me on tumblr [@julzypoolzy](https://julzypoolzy.tumblr.com/) (not that active) and on Twitter [@julzy_poolzy](https://twitter.com/julzy_poolzy) (so much more active)

**Author's Note:**

> I'll update the tags as I go but!!! i hope you enjoy this!!! the number of chapters right now is, of course, a guess, but I think it'll be around 15??? probably???? if you're reading this in the future when this story has finished, feel free to call me a fool, because there is a 0% chance I'll come back and edit this later.
> 
> Find me on tumblr [@julzypoolzy](https://julzypoolzy.tumblr.com/) and on Twitter [@julzy_poolzy](https://twitter.com/julzy_poolzy)


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